


Run, Bunny, Run

by Yankyo



Category: Undertale (Video Game)
Genre: F/M, Pining, Swapfell, bisexual reader character, reader character is named
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-10-09
Updated: 2020-11-10
Packaged: 2021-03-07 20:53:30
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 3
Words: 5,091
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/26903935
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Yankyo/pseuds/Yankyo
Summary: “You know, that was as painful to hear as I thought it would be.” Those words were familiar for some reason, it nagged at the back of his skull as he stared up at her, lifting his head from the bar to actually look her over now. The girl gave him an overly patient look and held out her hand to him, “Nice you meet you, Bones, I guess I’m your soulmate.” Like a bucket of cold water had been thrown over him, those words sobered him up far too quickly and Papyrus was left staring at the girl slack jawed. Fuck. Fuck, fuck, fuck, fuck, fucking, fuck. Without even thinking, his magic swirled around him, the urge to escape this painful situation just too strong to ignore and before he could even blink, the world went black around him and he was back in his own bed.You fully expected your soulmate to reject you, after all, the words tattooed on your skin was a confession to someone else, for goodness sakes! So when you meet the tall skeleton, you fully expect him to be out of your life before you can even blink, so why is he hanging around? And why don’t you really mind it?Based off of Short King by Absurdmagewrites
Relationships: Papyrus (Undertale) / Reader, Sans (Undertale)/Original Character(s)
Comments: 27
Kudos: 183





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

  * Inspired by [Short King](https://archiveofourown.org/works/24089707) by [absurdmagewrites](https://archiveofourown.org/users/absurdmagewrites/pseuds/absurdmagewrites). 



He wasn’t entirely sure of how he had ended up in this particular bar. One second he had been doing shots down the street at some well known monster hangout and the next he had this stranger clinging onto him bemoaning something about his job and buying another round of shots. As long as the drinks kept coming, Papyrus supposed he didn’t have too much of a reason to complain, besides, he didn’t want to be alone right now anyways and it was always better to make some friend of the night that he would never see again after that. That way no one would know just how pathetic and lonely he really was and the next morning he could fake his usual smile without any awkward small talk needed. Stars, he could still remember how he wanted to toss his fucking skull the morning his brother’s soulmate told him he had tried to  _ kiss  _ her while inebriated. That he had been dumb enough to  _ confess _ . Fuck, what was the point of even  _ having  _ his skull if he didnt have anything in it to begin with at that point? While he was sinking further into self pity, his friend of the night had continued talking, even calling over the bartender to whine to her, 

“... but as bad as I’ve got it, bones over here has it worse! Tell her what you were telling me? You know, about your brother and his girl?” He had told this guy  _ what?  _ Papyrus blinked his blurry eye lights, looking to his equally drunk companion before glancing to the bartender. She was a pretty thing, small and curvy with short curly hair that framed a gentle looking face. She looked the picture of the kindly bartender that listened to her patron’s woes with sympathy and an overflowing cup - probably a kindness soul, or maybe patience. Something about her face, something about the way those plump lips lifted slightly in an encouraging smile, something about  _ her _ made him speak up - the words coming out almost against his will. 

“I fell in love with my brother’s soulmate.” It was partially true, Shiloh was  _ amazing _ , she was pretty and kind and funny and smart and she  _ cared  _ for him like very few others did. He was  _ Papy  _ to her, not just Sans’ lazy brother. But was that love truly romantic? Some nights he would wonder that, some nights he would think about her smooth skin and soft lips and wonder what it would be like if  _ he  _ was her soulmate instead of Sans, would she love him just as much? Would her eyes sparkle like that at  _ him  _ instead? The bartender laughed, the sound lacking humor even as her smile grew wider. 

“You know, that was as painful to hear as I thought it would be.” Those words were familiar for some reason, it nagged at the back of his skull as he stared up at her, lifting his head from the bar to actually look her over now. The girl gave him an overly patient look and held out her hand to him, “Nice you meet you, Bones, I guess I’m your soulmate.” Like a bucket of cold water had been thrown over him, those words sobered him up far too quickly and Papyrus was left staring at the girl slack jawed.  _ Fuck.  _ Fuck, fuck,  _ fuck, fuck,  _ **_fucking, fuck_ ** . Without even thinking, his magic swirled around him, the urge to escape this painful situation just too strong to ignore and before he could even blink, the world went black around him and he was back in his own bed. 

“............... _ shit. _ ”

—————

His hangover the next morning was something  _ painful _ , but Papyrus trudged out of his room anyways to stuff something in his face and go greet his stolen dog. Crispin always made him feel better, the little guy’s dopey ass face always so cheerful and energetic as if nothing bad ever happened in the world. Looking into his eyes, Papyrus could almost pretend that the idiot dog was right and everything  _ was  _ all sunshine and rainbows and all the bad memories were nothing but nightmares. He  _ definitely  _ wanted to hope that yesterday was nothing more than a dream, that the first thing he said to his soulmate, the words that were inked on her skin  _ forever _ wasn’t what he thought they were - but his soul thrummed painfully in his chest as if to tell him ‘ _ no, moron, you fucked that up like you fuck everything else in your life up _ ’, he almost wanted to laugh. Shiloh had hated Sans for so long just for having their first meeting, him calling her a no-body, how the hell were  _ you  _ to respond to your soulmate telling you they loved someone else in your first meeting? Stars above, he was surprised you didn’t just smash the bottle over his head and end his pathetic life right then and there. He scratched at his clavicle, his own tattoo hidden under his clothing - he had always thought his first words would be some kind of stupid pun and that you would say those words with a laugh and a shake of your head. Maybe he would have said something awkward or flirtatious or otherwise dumb and you would smile at him, so warm and sweet -  _ you know, that was as painful to hear as I thought it would be. _ It was supposed to be  _ playful _ , and  _ sarcastic,  _ and  _ tender,  _ but of course he fucked everything up and  _ actually  _ hurt you. Of course his wishy washy feelings towards his brother’s mate would come to bite him in the ass, did he think he could actually keep these strange feelings under wraps until one day his own soulmate appeared and made everything better again? The world didn’t work like that and was more than happy to remind him of that simple fact every single time he fucked up. 

Papyrus grumbled softly under his breath, ignoring the stray moan that came from Shiloh’s and Sans’ shared room as he put the leash on Crispin and all but ran out the door. He would face  _ that _ later. For  _ now  _ he had to figure out what the hell he was to do about this situation. He couldn’t just run away from his soulmate? Right? Already, his soul was hurting and calling out for hers, but it wasn’t like he even knew what bar it was he had been at last night? He didn’t even know your  _ name _ or  _ anything  _ about you! All he knew was that you.... you were  _ gorgeous.  _ Certainly way too pretty to be with someone like  _ him.  _ He ground his teeth together, self pity rising up in his bones so thick it was like a miasma running through his system, he was so wrapped up in his thoughts that he didn’t see the dog running at him until he was bowled over by a great fluffy, white, cloud. 

“Whoa there, big fella! Shit! I’m so sorry, he got away from me for a second, are you -“ That voice was familiar, oh, oh  _ stars, please no. _ You looked down at him, looking just as shocked as he did as the two of you stared at one another, your very large dog just letting it’s tongue loll out happily as it watched the pair of you - thankfully Crispin was ever the savior and started yapping at the large weight on his chest and the sound snapped you both back to reality. “Come on, Lila, get off of him.” You gently eased the dog off of him, your hand on her head, softly scratching at her fur. “I am sorry about that, I turned my head for a second and she took off like a bullet. She uh,” You snorted softly, “She really likes meeting new people.” He was supposed to say something here - a joke? An actual greeting? His name? Your expression twisted, awkwardness filling your face. “Listen, I know you probably don't want much to do with me - don’t worry, I’m not going to chase you down or anything, sometimes soulmates don't work out and I wasn’t expecting mine to anyways. I even got a girlfriend so -“

“You have a girlfriend?” He blurted, startled by the sudden flare of pain and irritation that overcame his soul. But he could  _ feel  _ the wave of happiness coming from you as the sweetest smile spread across your face. 

“Yeah,” A blush spread across your cheeks,  _ fuck  _ how could you look so  _ cute  _ while you were ripping his soul to  _ shreds. _ “We’ve been together for a few years now, her soulmate rejected her too and you know, I know you’ve got that... well you’ve got your own  _ situation  _ to deal with yourself so don't worry! It was cool to meet you though, I always wondered what you were going to look like, its cool to put a face to that weird font, Bones -”

“Papyrus.” 

“Yeah! That font!”

“No,” He cleared his throat, shifting awkwardly from foot to foot, “My name is Papyrus.” Why was he telling you this? You were  _ actively  _ letting him know you had absolutely no interest in being with him, but  _ dammit,  _ he just wanted to hear you say that one time. 

“Oh,  _ oh,  _ Papyrus then.” You held out your hand once more, looking as if you fully expected him to disappear again, “My name is Bonnie.” This time, however, Papyrus didn’t waste a second in taking your hand, marveling at just how much smaller you were than he was. At how  _ soft  _ your skin was. 

“Nice to meet you, Bon, but um, I do have a question.” You looked up at him, your head just barely coming up to his ribs, looking  _ adorable  _ as your head tilted quizzically to the side, “When did I ever reject you as my soulmate?” You blinked, looking frankly bewildered by his words, but before you could respond, he leaned down to press his teeth to your knuckles in a mock kiss and turned on his heel with a lazy wave. “Be seeing you round, Bunny.” 


	2. Chapter 2

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Everyone has been so nice! Thank ya’ll for the comments and kudos! This is gonna be a slow adventure and I’m a slut for angst, so be prepared for the long dance between Paps and his Bunny

Ever since you were a child, you had expected your soulmate to reject you. How could you not? The words were right there for you to see, inked on your skin in that goofy font  _ forever _ .  _ I fell in love with my brother's soulmate _ . Of course, like everyone, you had thought that soulmates were this wonderful, perfect thing that would  _ always  _ work out, but, of course, that turned out to not be true. Just because someone was your soulmate didn't automatically mean that everything would go smoothly. A fact that was hammered home when you came home to your father throwing yours and your mother's things out onto the lawn to make room for his new girlfriend and  _ her  _ son, not even looking back to see your heartbroken face as you helped your mother gather all the belongings you could fit into your little car. 

Soulmates didn't always work out. Soulmates didn't always love you. And sometimes you were left behind to pick up the shattered pieces by yourself. So, everytime you looked in the mirror and saw that goofy font staring back at you, you squared your shoulders, smiled back at your reflection and kept pushing forwards. Every single time you felt like you wanted to give up, you picked yourself up and continued on, through the myriad of jobs you went through to help your mother support the both of you, through the rough patches where you could barely scrape together enough to both pay rent and eat that week, through giving up on college to devote yourself full time to working straight out of high-school, you pressed forwards and you kept your cheerful smile through it all. And in the end, you met Rose. 

Rose had been one of the bouncers at a club you bartended at for a while, she was tall and strong and courageous and  _ funny, _ someone who made you smile each time she came around to tell you about her night or about something outrageous she had seen working these clubs, really, it hadn't been too much of a surprise when you found yourself slowly but surely falling in love with her - of course, you hadn't really thought she would say yes when you shyly asked her out, but she hadn't hesitated to take your offered hand. Despite how her crimson hair shone in the sun, despite how her emerald eyes glittered when she smiled, despite how graceful and cool she was, apparently she had been outright rejected by her soulmate on their first meeting. She had even shown you her soulmark and the words had made your heart ache for her, the words right there on her bicep ' _ I thought you'd be prettier _ ' you had wasted absolutely no time in pulling her into your arms and assuring her that no matter  _ what  _ her  _ idiot  _ of a soulmate had said, she was  _ gorgeous. _ And the way she had trembled in your arms, had clung to you as if you were her lifeline, you had promised yourself then and there that you would  _ always  _ be there for her. 

When your mother died, it was Rose who held you while you cried, when your job fired you without warning, it was Rose who helped you pick yourself up and moved you into her apartment when you couldn’t pay for your own anymore, and it was Rose who was there night after night through the good and the bad, not some prospective soulmate. No, wherever your soulmate was, you wished them the best of luck and hoped they figured out whatever was going on with that love of theirs, but you didn’t need them in your life - so why did he still come anyways?

That night had started out like any other, Friday nights were always busy so you had been running back and forth most of the night. Thankfully no fights had broken out so far and while the owner had only recently started letting you serve monsters, there hadn’t been any trouble for you to try and solve. In fact, when the young man practically carrying a much taller skeleton monster had stumbled into your bar, you had been equally amused and happy for the unlikely friends, you had even pondered for a moment if  _ they  _ were part of the rare monster/human soulmate pairings that had been springing up lately, but as you came around to serve them, well, you found out very quickly how wrong you were.

” _ i fell in love with my brother’s soulmate.” _ The words rang through your very  _ being,  _ bringing with it an almost painful chill that made your skin crawl. You had wondered just how you would hear those fateful words, of course you had, but to have a drunken skeleton focus his eye lights on you, his gold fang flashing in the dim lights as he gave you a sad smile had  _ definitely  _ not been in the realm of possibility for you. You couldn’t help your laugh, really, you hadn’t even meant to but it slipped out anyways. Part of you was guilty for what you found yourself saying, but thankfully Bones didn’t even seem to register your words until you held your hand out to him and introduced yourself formally as his soulmate. You had expected him to reject you, of course, but disappearing into thin air? Well that was a level of rejection that made you laugh again, shaking your head at the level of absurdity your night had turned to. You laughed, because if you didn’t you might’ve pondered why you still felt a twinge of pain at how he couldn’t even  _ shake your hand  _ and  _ introduce himself. _ But of course, why even expect anything out of him? If you were lucky, you would never again run into the skeleton monster - and you would be  _ happy  _ without him....

That night, you came home to a silent home - Rose often worked far later than you did, and honestly you were kind’ve glad, how the hell were you to try and explain your night to her?  _ Hey, baby, met my soulmate. He’s a teleporting skeleton monster that’s like twice my height and kind’ve handsome for a skeleton?  _ Yeah, you weren’t admitting  _ that  _ out loud, hell, you didn’t even want to  _ think  _ about why you found him strangely attractive. No, you shook off those thoughts and tossed yourself into bed for a long night of rolling back and forth and pretending like your thoughts didn’t keep straying back to glowing eye lights and yellowed bones.

————-

The next morning, you rolled out of bed and tried to get ready as quietly as possible so as not to wake your girlfriend, she had to have came home in the early hours of the morning anyways, she deserved a few more hours of sleep before she had to start her day all over again. But, you couldn’t leave without giving her a soft kiss and pausing to look down on her peaceful expression.  _ I’ll tell her about the whole soulmate thing when I get home _ , you promised yourself. After all, what would the point be in keeping quiet about it? You and Rose had no secrets from one another before and you weren’t going to just start because of  _ him. _ So, you brewed yourself a to-go cup of tea to help you wake up and set out to your morning job. All together, you had three jobs, weekends were spent at the bar, the rest of the week you worked as a waitress, and most mornings, you drove down to the nicer part of the neighborhood, past homes you would never have stepped foot in otherwise to take care of various people’s dogs. 

The Wellstons were a rather nice couple that always tipped very generously, and they did seem to care a lot for their dog, a Great Pyrenees named Lila, but their careers kept them both too busy to give her the workout she needed everyday and you were more than happy to come in and roll around with the fluffy goofball and get  _ paid  _ for it in the end. And you  _ needed  _ some good pup therapy to get through your week sometimes, so when you opened the door to the big old goof already bounding in to give you a hug, you didn’t even hesitate to fall to your knees to give her kisses. You were more than happy to just lay here and cuddle the big pup for the next century, but you knew part of her excitement in seeing you was the walk to the dog park so she could see her doggy friends, so you reluctantly nudged her off so you could get her leash and doggie bags before you both were barreling out the door. 

No matter how often you were called here, you couldn’t help but feel out of place in such a fancy community. Each home was worth more than your entire existence three times over, and the people were all so beautiful and self assured and secure - and then there was you, your hair pulled into a messy bun, your sweatpants drab, but comfortable, and your tired expression from long nights spent at the bar. You couldn’t look more out of place if you  _ tried _ , but because of Lila, you were welcomed in. Because of the Wellstons, you were promoted around the small community for how good you were animals and so, if you weren’t in to play with Lila, you were being called to take care of Serenity, the energetic Siamese belonging to the sweet family two houses over, or to help train Maxwell, the bouncy German Shepard puppy given to the recently retired marine at the end of the lane.

You pondered sometimes if they knew that the pet food they were giving to these animals were more luxurious meals than you had eaten in a decade - not that you were bitter, you were more than happy to get a cheap burger from the shop just down the street from your little apartment and sit in the park with Rose watching the people go by. Of course, sometimes you mourned the fact your apartment was too small for you to have a big ol puppers like you had wanted since you were a young girl - but Lila here was a good substitute for now. Funnily enough, you were looking away from the houses to give Lila a smile when she suddenly threw herself forwards, yanking the leash from your hands to bound off to throw some poor person down to the sidewalk. You ran up quickly to pull her off, but as you saw who was currently being licked to death you wanted to just turn on your heel and try to find an appropriate cliff to fling yourself off. Was the soulmate thing  _ that  _ strong? How many months had you been coming around here and  _ now  _ was when you started running into him? Of course. He looked just as shocked to see you, though, so you both just stared at one another in surprise until the cutest little dog ever started yapping excitedly at Lila. If this was  _ any  _ other situation, you would be eagerly talking to the pet owner to see if you could get this little cutie on your roster if just to get the privilege of snuggling such an adorable little puppers, but instead you eased Lila up off of him and tried to assure him that you would be getting involved in his life. This was supposed to be quick, slightly awkward of course, but maybe you could separate feeling as if some sort of peace had been made - so what the  _ actual fuck  _ had happened?

If it weren’t for Lila’s impatient whine, you might’ve stood there for the rest of the day, your jaw on the floor like a moron. What the hell did he  _ mean?!  _ You’d suspect him telling you just last night that he was in love with someone else and then vanishing was a pretty clear message, wasn’t it? And he just walks away just like that, leaving you bewildered? What an asshole! You had half a mind to chase after him and give you a piece of your mind right there, but what was the point? You wanted to get  _ away _ from him, not chase after him! So, instead, you swallowed your irritation and took Lila to the park. Maybe running around with her for a good hour would help you ease the impotent anger. 

It didn’t. 


	3. Chapter 3

"What's got you so grumpy, Bons?" A furry hand poked at your forehead, smoothing out the crease between your brows. Usually, you were happy to see Blu, the tall bunny monster was fun to talk with and he always had funny stories about his old job he had back in the underground, but right now, you wanted nothing more than to go home and bury yourself in your blankets for the next century. It had been a few days since you last saw Papyrus - thankfully the Wellstons had a few days off so you hadn’t had to come around the fancy community, even though you missed Lila something awful. “Bonnie?” His head tilted slightly, his ears flopping to the side as he looked at you, his usually sarcastic face twisted with worry now. Guilt twisted in your chest, sharp enough that you forced yourself to smile at him. 

“It’s nothing, just been feeling a little worn out.” You weren’t really lying,you had thrown yourself into your work to keep from thinking about the situation, to keep from having to have  _ that  _ conversation with Rose. Fuck, you were supposed to have told her days ago, but each time you even thought about it, panic welled up in your throat and next thing you knew, you were all but running away. If it wasn’t for the extra hours she had been taking these last few days, you knew she would have noticed you were acting strange by now - like Blu, who gave you a disbelieving look, even as he busied himself with making the orders. It had only been a few months since you had started working with the bunny monster, but he had quickly learned how to read the expressions of everyone around him, especially yours, though you supposed that wasn’t too hard to do. You tended to be something of an open book. “...... I met him. My soulmate.” You muttered, how odd was it that you could tell him this so much easier than you could tell your  _ girlfriend _ , but somehow just telling  _ someone  _ made you feel strangely better, as if a weight was being lifted off your chest. 

“Well shit, how did  _ that _ go?” You groaned at the question, your arms wrapping tightly around your body. “That bad, huh? Isn’t that a good thing? You wanted nothing to do with the guy to begin with, right?”

“Apparently he doesn’t feel the same way.” You muttered back, “Hey.... Blue.... do you know a skeleton monster?” You felt stupid asking it, for all you knew, there were hundreds of skeleton monsters and you were doing that dumb think of assuming all monsters knew one another. 

“Depends on which one you’re talking about, Paps came around the hotel to do some comedy routines every now and again, but Sans wasn’t the friendly sort. If I saw him, he was coming in to give someone shit.” Paps. So he  _ did  _ know him!

“Papyrus? Right, that’s him, you know him?” 

“Pretty much everyone does, he used to do a bunch of odd jobs round the Underground, think he was even working with the queen for something.  _ That’s  _ who your soulmate is?” Blu snorted, shaking his head, “He’s like twenty times your size, how the hell was  _ that  _ supposed to work?” As much as you wanted to protest that you weren’t  _ that  _ small, his expression twisted with apprehension suddenly, his eyes darting back to you, as if he were worried. "Hey, Bons, how much you know about monsters?" 

"Only what you've told me.... why?" There was a feeling twisting in the pit of your stomach, a deep seated anxiety that made you want to vomit. 

"I.... well... monsters and their soulmates. Well, we don't - " 

"Excuse me, can I get some  _ service  _ over here?" A loud voice cut him off before he could finish. You gave Blu an apologetic smile, silently promising him you'd continue this conversation later before you whirled around to help the customer. 

"I'm so sorry about that, ma'am what can I get for you today?" You were quick to apologize, leaping straight into your chatty customer service mode - though you still felt Blu's worried eyes following after you. Unfortunately, it was busy enough that you were kept on your feet, so the conversation you had been having was pushed to the back of your mind until the very end of the day. It was only when you were gathering your belongings and heading out to your car that you even remembered. 

"Bon!" You jumped at the sound of your girlfriend's voice, a smile already spreading across your face at the sight if her waving energetically. Rose was a tall girl, standing at six feet tall, and with her brusque nature and muscular frame, she could be seen as intimidating, but to you, she was your big teddy bear - nothing could be more adorable than the way her emerald eyes twinkled at the sight of you and her lips stretched in a wide, happy grin. Even despite how you were feeling, you picked up your feet to all but run into her arms, the stress of your work day all but melting away as she kissed her head and hugged you tight.  _ This _ was where you belonged. Right here in her arms. “Bad day?” Rose pulled back slightly to look at you, her head tilted slightly in concern. That look wasn’t usually shown to you, you tried very hard not to give her any reason to worry about you and to know she sensed your turmoil made the guilt swirling in your stomach all the heavier. 

“It... it was long.” You admitted, resting your head against her so you wouldn’t need to see that look on her face. You  _ had  _ to get this situated and move on, you  _ couldn’t  _ let this go on longer than it had to. "Let's go get something to eat? We haven't had a date in forever." You glanced up to your girlfriend in time to see her cheeks flush happily. 

"It  _ has _ been a while." She pulled back finally, just keeping her hands at your waist now, "how about Gio’s?" Giovanni's was a small restaurant, a little hole in the wall that you and Rose had found by chance on your first date. The restaurant you had planned to go to was packed to the brim and as you were walking down the street in search of someplace else to go, it had started to storm seemingly out of nowhere, causing you both to just bolt for the nearest building, though once you had opened the door and the smell of food hit you both, you were ready to thank the storm. Giovanni's quickly became a special place for the two of you: when you asked Rose to be your girlfriend, it was there, when she asked you to move in with her, it was there, when one of you got promoted or found a new job, you went to Gio's to celebrate. 

“Are we celebrating something?” Her smile grew slightly at your question, her eyes glimmering. “Did they finally call you back?” Rose had been trying to get a security job for this high end software company for  _ months  _ now, the pay would be almost triple what both of you were bringing in and the hours less stressful, letting you both see one another more. “Rose! That’s great!” You exclaimed, practically leaping up into her arms to give her a tight hug, covering her face in kisses. Forget Papyrus and the whole soulmate business, you had to celebrate with your girlfriend! So when you pulled back and started walking her to your car, already eagerly chatting about what kinds of toppings you were going to get, you hardly even noticed the worried expression on Blu's face as you passed by him. 

You told yourself you'd ask about it the next time you worked together and tried to ignore the odd feeling of being watched. 


End file.
